Summer and beachside cocktails go hand in hand. Who doesn't spend the winter dreaming about it? Nobody, that's who. So get your summer cocktail dreaming on with this insider's guide to the top 5 Cape Cod beach bars. New England winters are long - making the most of summer is absolutely required and these gems will help you do just that. In no particular order, here we go...

Wellfleet Beachcomber, WellfleetThis one is on every 'best of' beach bar list. It sits within the Cape Cod National Seashore housed in a former US Lifesaving Station. Back in the day, when we all lived free and loose, you could bring your drinks right down onto the beach. Now you'll need to enjoy your Goombay Smash within the property's confines, but you're still just a stone's throw from the water's edge. My favorite time to go is happy hour, but they've got great bands every night from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Sound like a proper local and call it the "Comah". ​

Photo courtesy of the Wellfleet Beachcomber

Photos courtesy of Wequassett Resort

Libaytion at Wequassett Resort, HarwichOn the one hand, you've got sandy floors, vinyl tablecloths and bar stools from the 70s at the Comah. On the other, you've got the waterfront pergola bar at Libaytion which was built to take your Instagram to the next level. This is the spot to order a glass of rosé or a dark 'n stormy and take in the view of Pleasant Bay with the Lilly Pulitzer and Nantucket Reds crowd. If you get chilly, just grab a cozy spot by the poolside fire pit. ​

Ocean House Beach Bar, DennisportThe Ocean House Restaurant is one of the best on Cape Cod and this sweet little beach bar is a recent addition to the property. Perched on a tiny hill at the edge of Nantucket Sound, live acoustic tunes and great drinks bring out locals and visitors alike. It closes early, around 8:30 pm, so plan to get your cocktails and your view before it gets too late.

Photo courtesy of Baxter's

Baxter's Boathouse Club, HyannisWhen people reminisce about Old Cape Cod, they are thinking of places like Baxter's. Paneled wood walls, canvas captain's chairs, old nautical stuff on the walls. It reminds me of my grandparent's house on Cape Cod in the 70s. It's literally on top of Hyannis Harbor which means you'll be sipping their famous Binnacle Bloody watching the ferries and boats make their way out to Nantucket and the Vineyard and home again. AND it's the only bar in Hyannis with a transient dock that you can drive your boat right up to. The waitstaff will even serve you onboard. So convenient when cocktail hour calls! 21+.

Trader Ed's, HyannisLocated inside the Hyannis Marina, Trader Ed's is the closest you can get in the Northeast to feeling like you are in Florida or the Caribbean. The high top bar tables at the edge of the docks are perfect for an afternoon of cocktails in the summer sun and it's where the nicest yachts are docked. The pool is for a dockage customers only, but no matter because it's Cape Cod, you've got a Hurricane Bob in your hand and it's summer! Cheers!

It's 1989 and I'm a sophomore in college waitressing on Cape Cod for the summer. I have the weekday 'outdoor deck shift' and on sunny days my fellow waitstaff and I have all kinds of time on our hands because our customers are at the beach. We talk about everything during those slow hours - plans for after work, boyfriends, college majors, the adorable muskrats that swim by the waterfront restaurant deck (we worked at Clancy's in Dennisport), and admire each other's jewelry. And here I discover the first Cape Cod Screwball bracelet I have ever seen. My coworker said it had been her mom's and it was made at Eden Hand Arts in Dennis. She let me try it on. I loved it. I had to have it. I had lots of cash from waitressing!

Eden Hand Arts is a small artist studio on the corner of Sesuit Neck Rd. and Rt. 6A in Dennis. I had driven by it hundreds of times over the years and never noticed it. On this day, I pulled into the empty, tiny parking lot and entered. The studio was filled with sterling silver bracelet, earring, necklace and pin displays. And there to the left in a little nook was the owner, John Carey, at his jewelry bench hard at work making bracelets. ​

This was about thirty years ago and I remember my conversation with John that day like it was yesterday. At the time, he was 68 years old. The studio was empty except for the two of us and we started chatting. He told me about the sterling silver gauge wire (I had never heard this term before) he used to make his bracelets and the process. He told me that his wife Eve crafted all of the beautiful jewelry in the studio other than the bracelets and that he had been a teacher before he retired - well, before he semi-retired - and they started Eden in 1964. We somehow got on the subject of the Sandwich Glass Factory which was located down the road in Sandwich in the 1800s and was the largest producer of glass in the world. I loved art glass then and still do. John opened one of his many bench drawers and took out a red, white and blue striped glass cabochon that was about a half inch in diameter. He told me it had been made at the Sandwich Glass Factory in the late 1800s and he wanted me to have it. I said something like, "No, I couldn't possibly." He insisted.

Our conversation that day lasted over two hours and I walked away with more than an original Cape Cod Screwball bracelet and a piece of historic glass. John was the type of person you could spend a full day talking to, he was just that interesting and knowledgeable and kind. I am grateful to this day for the opportunity to have met him. How many people would take two hours of out their work day to talk to a 19 year old kid?

​Though John and Eve have passed away, their family continues to own and run Eden Hand Arts. They are the only (repeat: only) authorized maker of the Cape Cod Screwball bracelet. They do no sell their bracelets through other jewelers, or online, or anywhere at all except through their studio in Dennis. The bracelets have become so popular that many knock-offs exist and the true Eden Hand Arts bracelets now have an identifying tag on them. Back in 1989, this wasn't the case and my original bracelet was tagless. The bracelet pictured (one of many I now own) I've had for about 15 years.​If you want to show off a Cape Cod bracelet, or an armful of them, please honor the legacy of this special man and his original and iconic design and buy it at Eden. They custom fit you at the studio and you'll leave knowing that you've bought a piece of true Cape Cod history.

like I did, Cape Cod is the place that will change all that for you. I recall class being mostly about wars and assassinations and Roman aqueducts (I don't know why, but aqueducts are still front and center in my memory all these years later! HA!). Then I became an adult and we bought SEAS THE DAY on Cape Cod and because of that, we were LIVING RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of one of the most fascinating historical places in the country. Pilgrims, sea captains' homes, famous artists' dune shacks, shipwrecks, Native American tribes, the summer White House of JFK, it's all that and more. History at your fingertips.

Most people think that the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, MA (on the mainland just off the Cape) upon arrival to the new world. Incorrect! The Mayflower first stopped in what is now Provincetown Harbor in 1620. The Pilgrims went ashore in Provincetown and found their first fresh water and food - and had their first skirmish with the Native Americans. It was here they wrote the Mayflower Compact which was the first governing document of the new world. Lots of firsts on Cape Cod! The land was deemed too sandy for farming and the Pilgrims left and settled across Cape Cod Bay in Plymouth. Today, there is a fascinating tribute to these brave original settlers, the Pilgrim Monument, in Provincetown - it also happens to be the tallest all-granite structure in the United States.

A replica of the Mayflower

Pilgrim Monument in Provincetown

​From the arrival of the Pilgrims to the present day, the ocean has been central to life on Cape Cod. . Hundreds of sea captains lived here from the 1600s to 1800s, sailing their clipper ships to faraway places like India and Asia, gone for months or years at a time. Many of the sea captains' homes still exist today as private residences and nearly all are on the National Register of Historic Places. In Yarmouthport (a hop and skip from SEAS THE DAY), the historic Captain's Mile showcases more than 50 historic captains' homes like the Capt. Bangs Hallet house which is open for tours.

​Before modern navigational equipment, dozens of ships wrecked off the outer edge of Cape Cod. Dune shacks were built by the US Lifesaving Service beginning in the 1800s to house the men who worked to help wrecked ships, now known as the Coast Guard, as well as the sailors on those ships. In the 1920s, the Coast Guard was no longer using the shacks and they became popular with artists and writers who stayed there in the summers to hone their crafts. The most famous residents included Jackson Pollock, Tennessee Williams, e.e. cummings, Jack Kerouac and Eugene O'Neill. Today, the dune shacks still stand - and still do not have electricity or running water! Humble in design, they sit majestically atop the parabolic dunes of the Cape Cod National Seashore looking out across the Atlantic Ocean.

So, about those shipwrecks! One of them, the Whydah, wrecked in a storm off the shore of Wellfleet on April 26, 1717 and is really something special. Why? It's the only authenticated pirate ship in the world and it holds a literal and metaphoric ton of treasure at the bottom of the ocean. The Whydah was discovered by underwater explorer Barry Clifford in 1984. Recovered treasure from the Whydah includes countless gold coins, weaponry, jewelry, apparel and even a leg bone! Its captain, "Black Sam" Bellamy (because he wore his black hair in a ponytail rather than donning a powdered wig), was an Englishman who was the top-earning pirate in history. Bellamy captured at least 53 ships in his brief stint as a pirate captain before he perished in the Whydah wreck at the age of 28. 53 ships is a lot of treasure! You can see it at Cape Cod's fascinating Whydah Museum - a quick 15 minutes from SEAS THE DAY!

The bell from the Whydah was brought up from the ocean floor and is how the ship has been authenticated

Whydah treasure you can see in person at the museum

In the early 1600s, the Native American Wampanoag Nation spanned the geography from Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod to Narragansett, Rhode Island. These native peoples had an incredibly vibrant culture which lives to this day. The Mashpee Wampanoags on Cape Cod hold an annual powwow to which all are invited. The event showcases the artistry and history of these first inhabitants of Cape Cod and offers an incredible glimpse into Native American traditions.

Some background...​In November 2015, Expedia agreed to buy HomeAway and its subsidiaries which include VRBO, vacationrentals.com and a long list of others. (These companies are referred to as OTAs - Online Travel Agencies.) Expedia paid $3.9 BILLION for the sale of HomeAway. This might not have been interesting news around your dinner table, but it has reshaped what it looks like for travelers to rent a vacation home.

How? Expedia is a public company. That means they have one primary goal - to raise the price of their stock for shareholders. They do that by generating more revenue and profit. In a market where they do not own the product they sell - their product, vacation homes, are owned by the homeowners - there is only one easy way to generate more revenue and profit. FEES.

In the pre-Expedia days, vacationers would find a home to rent on an OTA site, contact the homeowner through that site, and make their reservation. Money exchanged hands directly between the guest and the homeowner through personal check or credit card. The homeowner was able to email and talk with the guest to answer questions, help with vacation itineraries, and generally provide personalized customer service. The OTA made their money through subscriptions homeowners bought each year (typically $400 to thousands, depending on type) in order to be listed on the site.

Vacationers were happy. Homeowners were happy. Wonderful vacations in wonderful homes were enjoyed.

Flash forward to early 2016. Expedia has to justify the $3.9 billion sale and so institutes a 'service fee' on each rental that the vacationer must pay in order to book the vacation property. This service fee can be as much at 20% of the rental cost and it goes directly to Expedia's bottom line. There is a behind-the-scenes algorithm used by Expedia to determine the service fee % on each rental, which means there is no way to predict how much it will be until you get an online quote through the site. A recent guest at SEAS THE DAY in October 2017 paid a 17.5% service fee - $245!! - when they booked our home through an OTA. Yikes. I can think of about a thousand better things to spend vacation money on than fees. The fee can be hundreds - and in some cases, thousands - of dollars, depending on the cost of the rental. Again, this service fee goes right to the OTA's bottom line, it was never intended as a way to provide you, the vacationer, with additional 'service'. The service you get comes from the vacation rental owner - it always has.

Another new change is that contact information between the homeowner and traveler is blocked. No longer can we talk to guests on the phone or email them to answer their questions before a reservation is made. This restriction was implemented so that homeowners and travelers are forced to run any transaction through the OTA website, ensuring the OTA gets their fee. A classic example of putting profit before customer service.

If you are like my family, you don't want to spend hundreds or thousands of extra dollars on a 'service' fee just so that you can book a property online! So what to do?

Here are some suggestions on securing the vacation rental of your dreams WITHOUT paying any additional fees:

1. Go ahead and look for a rental ALL OVER the internet. Google everything you can think of (e.g. Miami Beach vacation rental, Miami Beach beach rental, Miami Beach beach house for rent, etc.). Don't restrict your search to HomeAway, VRBO, AirBnB, etc. Most homeowners now have vacation home websites like SEAS THE DAY's. Do a little homework - it is worth it.

2. If you do find a home you want to rent on an OTA website, try to find that home elsewhere on the internet before inquiring through the OTA. If the home has a name (like SEAS THE DAY) or another identifying feature, Google it and try to find the owner's website and contact information. They will be so happy to hear from you and you will have saved yourself a bundle!

3. Here's a trick someone taught me - Google a photo of the house on the OTA's site to see if the photo shows up on another website. Most times, homeowners use the same photos on their OTA listing and on their own website. To do that, go to the photo of the home on the OTA site and right click on it, then choose Search for Google Image. It doesn't work every time, but you could get lucky.

4. Join Facebook groups pertaining to where you like to travel. There are lots and they are great resources for vacation rentals directly from owners.

5. Never be shy about contacting the owner directly, outside of an OTA site. Many vacation homeowners are very unhappy about Expedia price gouging YOU - our customers. If an owner would prefer you book via an OTA (which is unlikely, but could happen), they will let you know and you can decide how you want to proceed.

I hope this overview helps you on your next vacation search. Life is short, go on vacation! And don't forget that we would love to welcome you at SEAS THE DAY on your next visit to spectacular Cape Cod. Contact me for information!

(P.S. If you are wondering why SEAS THE DAY and other vacation rentals are still active on the pay-to-stay OTAs, it's simply because there are no viable competitive sites in the market YET that don't charge fees AND generate enough traffic. I hope that will change.)​

There are so many reasons to love the beauty of Cape Cod - but here's one you may not know. Because of its shape, Cape Cod is one of the only places (perhaps THE only place) on the Eastern seaboard where you can watch the sun set over the ocean. Why? Because the sun sets in the west and when you're on the East coast, that usually means it's setting over the land. UNLESS you're on the bayside beaches of Cape Cod! These beaches on the "bicep" and "forearm" of the Cape allow you look over Cape Cod Bay toward the west. In the summer, sunset is right around 8 pm. If you're nearby, you'll know the sun has set because of the applause from those on the beach...Mother Nature's show is truly something special. Can you hear the applause? Come visit!

It's no surprise that Cape Cod is one of America's premiere summer destinations. Cape Cod evokes a sense of nostalgia few other places can match. Why? New England summer days with skies so blue they seem surreal, white sand beaches regularly selected on "the world's best" lists, sailboats gliding on the pristine bay, shingled historic sea captain's homes one after another on roads lined with 100 year old oaks, clam shacks and homemade ice cream shops...these are the things that vacationers long for all year long until summer arrives once again.

But here's something you might not know - Cape Cod in the winter is awesome. We regularly spend time in the off-season at SEAS THE DAY. During our last visit, just last week, we enjoyed a PERFECT afternoon at the beach. The sun was blazing and warm, the waves were mellow and there was nary another soul to be seen. And the shells! In the winter, the best restaurants are open, shopping abounds, even golf courses are open! We provide our guests with our personal activities guide to the very best of everything so you can spend every minute making memories.

If you need a winter getaway to recharge your batteries, Cape Cod will leave you relaxed, revived and ready to face the rest of winter with a smile!

66 days until spring - that seems doable, no? Plus there is always that one random 70 degree day in March on Cape Cod to keep the dream alive! One of our VERY favorite Cape Cod activities on warm winter days and during the spring is a visit to Stony Brook Grist Mill & Museum in Brewster. The museum is open only on Saturdays during the summer, but a visit off season is, in my opinion, even more wonderful. Why? The Stony Brook herring run cuts through the property and during March and April the herring make their way from Cape Cod Bay, up the Stony Brook fish ladders (my daughter is jumping across a fish ladder below) and to the freshwater Mill Ponds just behind the Grist Mill where they spawn. Through some miracle of nature, the herring return back to the place they were born every year. It's truly amazing to watch the iridescent scales of hundreds of herring swim by you up the fish ladders as they make their way to the ponds to have their babies. Some days they are so plentiful that even the air smells like herring! In 2016, nearly 90,000 herring made their way up Stony Brook. Please note that the herring are protected and cannot be touched.

Insider's tip: you will know the herring are running when seagulls are EVERYWHERE on the grist mill property and on the roof of the historic white house next door! They love a herring snack!